Inspired Warren pulls away from Mundelein

Yes, those admiring girls can get a boy's heartbeat going.

In VaShaun Wright's case, it was his girlfriend watching from the stands on Friday night.

Wright, a junior running back, was racing towards the end zone late in the third quarter at Mundelein. However, he had a Mustangs defender ready to topple him.

"My girlfriend is my inspiration,'' Wright said. "My adrenaline was flowing. I just gave him a stiff-arm."

Warren (3-2) had two running backs break the 100-yard mark on this night.

And the Blue Devils needed those yards to put away an improving Mundelein squad. Warren's 2-point halftime lead expanded to 30 points at game's end as the Devils wore down the Mustangs 42-12.

Warren's latest star, Darrius Crump (15 caries, 183 yards, 2 TDs), dominated early. But he took a seat when his sore hand began to bother him. That gave Wright a chance to show off his racing skills.

"Wright is very good football player,'' said Warren football coach Bryan McNulty. "He's a starter on any other team in our league."

Warren was clearly the favorite coming into this contest against winless Mundelein. However, the underdog trailed just 14-12 at the break.

"Coach George Kaider does a great job here,'' McNulty said. "They had a good game plan tonight."

Warren made quick work after Mundelein's fumble on the opening kickoff. Crump made his first carry of the night good for 44 yards and a touchdown.

Mundelein (0-5) didn't lose hope, though. The Mustangs made a fourth-down carry for a first down and then junior Isaac Baunelos scored from 5 yards out to knot the game up at 7-7.

"There is no quit on this team,'' said Mundelein's Kaider. "The last five weeks, we've played very well in the first half."

Mundelein grabbed a second-quarter lead when place kicker John Marcos put one through the uprights from 39 yards out.

Warren took to the air to grab the lead four minutes later. Warren quarterback Jay Nickell tossed his first of 3 touchdowns, this time from 5 yards out to Caleb Reams.

Mundelein added 2 points before halftime as lineman Antoine Hicks tackled Crump in the end zone for a safety.

The second half was all Warren. In addition to the Wright dash for a score, Nickell and Reams teamed up on a 74-yard TD pass play. Nickell's final pass play for a score went 25 yards to Nick Marcinkus.

"We wanted to be more physical in the second half,'' McNulty said. "We wanted to force them into some third-and-longs."